Krathong City
Krathong City is a city in the Province of the Grand Yarphese Republic. It was formerly known as Krakor until 2003, when it was combined with New Krakor and renamed. It is best known for being a popular year round tourist resort and prosperous port. Located on the Tonle Sap Lake, it forms an important trade centre both domestically and internationally. Etymology The name Krathong came from the name of a Buddhist traditional holiday called Loy Krathong celebrated in Thailand, in which participants release small floating rafts, about the size of a hand, and elaborately decorated, into a river. Krathong (Thai: กระทง) is a Thai word used to describe the floating lanterns. In Krathong City, the name has been extended to describe round commercial floating buildings that float on Tonle Lake, designed to look similar to Krathongs when viewed from above. The city's full name is "City of Krathongs on the Tonle Sab Endowed by the Grand Vietnamese Liberation Army," (Tànphố Lễyậc trên Biễnhhồ ưu Đãi cũa Quângđộı Yậc Yãıphóng Oaı) which is seldom used in full, but only for traditional or formal purposes. History For hundreds of years, the area now known as Krakor was inhabited by the Khmer people who inhabited floating villages on the fluctuating Tonle Lake. The area was under the Khmer Empire, and later French Indochina. It then fell into the hands of the Khmer Rouge before they were ousted. In 1999, it was the location of a bloody exchange between fishermen living in floating villages and the Vietnamese Liberation Army, involving five deaths. The Vietnamese Liberation Army traveled down the Tonle River into the lake in 1996, capturing the area. Under Yarphese rule, the city of Krakor developed at a normal rate comparable to nearby Cambodian towns. After the state adopted Buddhism as the official and national religion, tensions within the city calmed down. In response to the positive reaction from the city, the Vietnamese Liberation Army made a deal with the province that it would allow gambling outside of cities, within the province. It also promised to construct a metropolis to attract tourism to the area, which was subsequently carried out. In 2003, the planned city of New Krakor was constructed over the outskirt of the town of Krakor, expanding onto many former farming areas. However, an idea for a tourist attraction put forth by Thai VLA member Pratchorn Chiyatam (Phạm Chĩa Tám), to model the city into a year-round Loy Krathong. The idea was to have corporations purchase circular floating krathongs on Tonle Sab and lease space to smaller companies. The confusion that followed was known as the Krakor Craze (sometimes stylized as Krakor Kraze). So many multinationals asked to buy krathongs, the Vietnamese Liberation Army was forced to auction them off. There were forty krathongs in total, and 388 companies trying to buy them. Subsequently, tourism shot up, as millions of tourists travelled there in 2004 to visit the floating shops, hotels, and restaurants. In early 2010, a seaplane facility was constructed immediately to the north of the city. This caused a controversy by the Cambodian government, who owns the northern half of Tonle Sab. They claimed it disturbed the traditional lifestyle in floating villages. After talks, it was decided that the Vietnamese Liberation Army could keep the airport as long as it was at least half underwater. The result was a pressurized building that allowed airplanes to stay underwater. Currently flights are offered for amphibious craft from Saigon and various places in the Khmer areas and Mekong Delta. Layout The city is located on Tonle Sab Lake, the largest freshwater lake in Yarphei. Tonle Sab is notable for being unique in its flooding patterns. The Tonle River is its main inflow and outflow. During the rainy season, the Mekong River overflows and pours into Tonle Sab via the Tonle River. The lake grows in size to approximately three times its area. However, during the dry season, the Mekong River is at a much lower level, and the filled lake pours out into the Mekong via the Tonle River. The oscillating area of the lake has made settlement difficult, because the coastline was highly unexpected, and depended on the flows in distant areas of China, Burma, and Laos. In order to deal with the problem while still being able to get ahold of the rich water resources, villagers devised the idea of floating fishing villages, which would change location depending on the water level and extent. The Vietnamese Liberation Army sought to combine traditional city planning ideas with those of floating villages. The result was a two part city. The southern, land based section is the largest part, containing most of the population of the city. In the centre, the location of the former city of Krakor, a vibrant downtown is build with modern buildings, including the 210-metre tall Krakor Tower, which offers spectacular views of the city as well as some of the highest-rated Khmer Cuisine in the Khmer areas. There are other tall buildings in the downtown such as the Cãng Saı headquarters, and modern road systems. To the east of the land city is the port, the third largest in the Khmer Areas, after Sihanoukville and Kampot. The port is built on an artificial floating island on concrete supports, operating similar to Khuâyđầy Platform, but smaller. Ferry ships carry the goods to and fro to the island, allowing the goods to be shipped to other parts of Yarphei. Trading partners in the port include Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar, and Laos. The north part of the city, the floating part, is separated from the land-based part by a buffer area of fertile floodplain. It is cultivated during the dry season, when the waters recede. There is a road which lies underwater most of the year, leading up to the mile-long pier which forms the base of the northern part of the city. The northern part of the city is composed of a pier, which has an upper viewing level and lower levels for condominiums and apartments. On the pier there are landings for ferry boats which can travel to any of the forty krathongs in the city. Each krathong is owned by a different corporation. They are in the shape of a c'', with a small opening to let craft into their interiors. They are strung along a single track with steel cables, and partly motorized, and travel around the lake on the track. Each ''krathong is two to three storeys high, with several small stores forming something similar to a mall. They also have extensions that are decorated to look like a flower or candle. The krathongs look like real krathongs when viewed from the viewing deck of the pier or from the top of Krakor Tower. The top floor of each Krathong is dedicated to the corporation that owns the krathong, and hotel corporations often choose to turn the top floors into hotels. Culture Being a centre of tourism to the Khmer areas, it is also a centre of the culture of Tonle Sab, despite slowly distancing from the traditional culture of the past and around the lake. The culture has become increasingly cosmopolitan, as Thai Yarphese and Vietnamese Yarphese move in. However, the culture remains distinctly Khmer. Krathong City the most famous centre of Khmer cuisine, outside Phnom Penh. The main language is Khmer, and the Khmer majority gives the city an unique feel. Popular in the city are karaoke clubs, open air markets, and some casinos outside the city, due to the fact that casinos are banned inside the city. The city has distinct edges where city ends and farming begins, so that it is said that one can have one foot on a farm and one foot in the city. Economy Krathong City has an advanced, productive economy based on tourism and trade. Hotels in the city centre, krathongs, the pier, and open air markets use tourism as their main form of revenue. The port produces a comparable amount of revenue, shipping goods from Laos to all of Yarphei, and from other countries to the Khmer areas. However, the city has also a productive service sector. Large buildings belong to various corporations. However, around the city core, the market economy prevails, as there are many open-air markets. Most of the entertainment, dining, and lodging, however, is on the lake while few people live there. Category:Settlements Category:Yarphei